It’s the beginning of December, what pleasant festivities we hope you are enjoying, and we’re adding some sparkle to your holidays with this month’s Fights 2 Watch. Let the Christmas beatings, commence.
Michelle Waterson vs. Herica Tiburcio – Invicta FC 10 – December 5 (Houston, Texas)
The face of Invicta makes her return on December 5th, as “The Karate Hottie” defends her atomweight belt against Brazilian Herica Tiburcio.
Waterson is 3-0 in Invicta, and her biggest career win came against current UFC Ultimate Fighter strawweight contender Jessica Penne to win the atomweight strap. With seven submission wins and three knockouts to her name, the Jackson’s fighter has only gone to decision twice in her career and will be expected to put on a show at Invicta 10.
22 year-old Tiburcio (8-2) comes into the fight as a huge underdog as she takes on one of MMA’s biggest prospects. The Brazilian has finished 75% of her wins by submission and her Brazilian jiu-jitsu will need to be on point if she wants to submit the very durable Waterson.
Roger Gracie vs. James McSweeney – ONE FC Warrior’s Way – December 5 (Pasay City, Philippines)
For a card that includes: Brandon Vera, Bibiano Fernandes and Ana Julaton, the talk surrounding ONE FC’s next event is fixated on a potential show stealing fight between debuting Roger Gracie and the UK’s James McSweeney.
Third degree Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Gracie is a name with deep heritage in BJJ, and Roger (6-2) is another accomplished name from the family tree. Having competed in Strikeforce and the UFC, Gracie has been on the big stage and owns impressive wins over Kevin Randleman and Keith Jardine.
34 year-old veteran McSweeney (14-11) is a seasoned veteran, having competed in the UFC earlier in his career. Now, he stands undefeated in ONE FC, with two supreme knockout finishes, including a vicious soccer kick which is legal in the promotion.
Colin Fletcher vs Michael Brightmon – BAMMA 17 – December 6 (Manchester, England)
“Freakshow” is set to bring Christmas joy a little earlier this year for the UK fans, as he squares off in a lightweight title eliminator against American veteran Michael Brightmon.
Fletcher (10-4) looks to put doubt to the back of his mind and return to finishing opponents, with his last non-decision win coming in 2011 at BAMMA 8 versus David Round. Victory for Fletcher sets up the heated re-match with current lightweight title holder Mansour Barnaoui in 2015.
Hawaii’s Brightmon (13-4) was originally scheduled to face Barnaoui at BAMMA 16, but the champion withdrew through injury. 69% percent of his wins have gone to decision however he is coming off a vicious guillotine submission win over Andrei Vasinca at the start of November.
Travis Browne vs. Brendan Schaub – UFC 181 – December 6 (Las Vegas, Nevada)
On a stacked event that includes two world title fights and the return of a bantamweight legend, the sleeping fight in Las Vegas is a heavy weight clash between Travis Browne (16-2-1) and Brendan Schaub (10-4), as both look to rebound from career altering losses.
The people’s heavyweight Browne looks to bounce back from a domination by current interim-champion Fabricio Werdum. Browne’s underdog story saw him pick up three straight knockouts over heavyweight veterans, including a huge comeback against Alistair Overeem in 2014. With 12 knockouts to his name, he’ll be looking to put himself back in the world title picture with a big win.
Schaub comes into this fight on different terms after a very close split decision loss to Andrei Arloviski which many thought could have been scored for Schaub. The “Rowdy” heavyweight holds important wins over Mirko Filipović and Matt Mitrione, and a victory over the highly regarded Browne could erase his previous defeat.
Nate Diaz vs. Rafael dos Anjos – UFC on FOX 13 – December 13 (Phoenix, Arizona)
The defiant return of MMA badboy Nick Diaz marks a refreshing addition to the already super-stacked 155lb division.
It will be over a year out of action for the Stockton fighter when he steps into the Pheonix octagon, after a year-long hiatus for Diaz plagued with contract negotiations. (17-9). The younger Diaz’s last win came against the diminished Grey Maynard during the TUF 18 finale, as the Cesar Gracie student knocked out the former champion.
However, dos Anjos will be looking to spoil the party for Diaz, as he enters the city of Benson Henderson, whom the Brazilian knocked out back in August. Picking up the biggest win of his career, dos Anjos seems a maximum of two fights away from a lightweight title shot, and a victory over the time tested Diaz could indeed skyrocket his stocks.
Rousimar Palhares vs. Jon Fitch – WSOF 16 – December 13 (Sacramento, California, United States)
He divides opinions, and after his release from the UFC for constant in-cage misconduct, Rousimar Palhares (16-6) isn’t the most popular fighter out there. However it’s hard to knock his ability, and with the nastiest heel hook in the game he possesses a huge stepping stone for the once great Jon Fitch (26-6-1-1NC).
After beating Steve Carl at WSOF 9, Palhares captured the promotion’s welterweight strap, yet again showcasing his dangerous heel hook finisher. With wins over Dan Miller, David Branch and other mid-teired talents during his UFC run, the Brazilian has the experience to edge out the tough test of Fitch.
After a guillotine choke by Josh Burkman shocked MMA fans everywhere, Fitch has returned to winning way against Marcelo Alfaya, Dennis Hallman, however neither were that impressive. Fitch was once touted as a special talent, but has failed to meet his potential. Although a win over Palhares will gain him a significant amount of redemption in his biggest challenge since Johnny Hendricks in 2011.
